Phil Simmons has kept faith with his present squad of players

Ireland coach Phil Simmons has named a preliminary squad of 18 players ahead of the World Cup Qualifiers to be held in South Africa from 1 to 18 April.

The tournament, which will be held in the Gauteng region, will see four sides qualify for the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

The panel shows no surprises with the 15 who won the Intercontinental Cup against Namibia last month all chosen.

They are joined by Eoin Morgan, who was out with injury and Middlesex duties, Paul Stirling and Reinhardt Strydom.

Simmons explained: "I've decided to go with the group of players who have served us so well this past season.

"It;s hard to go outside that group, and the fact that there is so little cricket for us between now and the qualifiers makes it nearly impossible for anyone else to stake a claim.

"We know it's going to be difficult for all the countries with just four places up for grabs.

"There's going to be a lot of pressure games, but we have an experienced squad who have proven themselves over the years.

"We now have a full-time strength and conditioning coach on board, and we're training and working hard in the nets.

"The players know what is expected from them, and we'll certainly not be found wanting in terms of effort and fitness.

"We'll spend probably two weeks beforehand in South Africa, and I'm currently putting the final touches to those plans."

Ireland have been placed in a Group alongside Scotland, Canada, Namibia, Oman and the second placed team from World Division 3.

The other group contains Kenya, Netherlands, Bermuda, Denmark, UAE and the first-placed team from WCL 3.

Ireland squad: W Porterfield (Gloucestershire), A Botha (North County), P Connell (North Down), A Cusack (Clontarf), P Eaglestone (Strabane), T Johnston (Railway Union), K McCallan (Waringstown), J Mooney (North County), E Morgan (Middlesex), K O'Brien (Railway Union), N O'Brien (Northants), A Poynter (Clontarf), B Rankin (Warwickshire), P Stirling (Cliftonville), R Strydom (North County), R West (Civil Service North), A White (Instonians), G Wilson (Surrey).

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